Considering refillable gas bottles
QAre refillable gas bottles safe for marine use? I have 904 Campingaz-type cylinders on my Feeling 32 and started looking at other options due to the cost of replacing them.
My daughter has recently completed a camper van conversion and she has gone for refillable cylinders. Price-wise the cost of filling a refillable cylinder is around £3-4 for a 904-sized cylinder, which is a considerable saving, although you do have to pay a significant outlay for the cylinder initially.
Although the cost saving is attractive, safety comes first, as does the availability of the LPG to refill the bottle. Are any of your experts able to confirm if refillable cylinders –such as those from Gaslow –are safe for marine use? Pete Morley
Graham Forbes, business & technical manager at the Boat Safety Scheme replies:
Boaters should not attempt to refill LPG cylinders intended for factory replenishment–to do so is unlawful and can be highly dangerous.
However, there are specialist refillable cylinders sold by companies designed to be filled at service stations which include automatic overfill protection on the valve. This automatically stops the filling at the correct level –the maximum fill will be 80% of the cylinder’s marked capacity.
For more information visit:
www.boatsafetyscheme. org/requirementsexaminations-certification/ boats-with-gas/
www.liquidgasuk.org/ uploads/ DOC62AB3B296993A.pdf
Gaslow’s Carl Orton replies:
When purchasing a refillable cylinder, you become the owner of the product, and you have the convenience of filling the cylinder as and when required.
When filling at LPG sites, it will always be propane that is dispensed into the cylinder.
Gaslow sells 2.7kg propane cylinders that will easily fit into your boat’s existing gas locker compartment, making this a simple transition from the discontinued Calor cylinders.
Our cylinder adaptor can easily convert your existing POL pigtails for your 3.9kg Calor if you have a bulkhead regulator or if you have an on-bottle regulator.
For your discontinued butane 4.5kg Calor, your existing regulator hoses will directly connect to your Gaslow 2.7kg cylinder. Or if you have an on-bottle 28mbar regulator you can simply swap it to our 37mbar version.
The Gaslow 2.7kg cylinder will only cost you around £4 to refill at LPG sites, giving you massive savings against your old exchanges. Meanwhile, 6kg refills cost approx £10, 11kg refills cost approx £18.
Our unique multivalve provides many added features such as crash sensor protection, a mechanically accurate contents gauge and filtration system. Please visit our website for more information and a comprehensive list of LPG filling stations.
www.gaslowdirect.com
A spokesperson for The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) replies:
There has been no suggestion from TYHA members that any are considering investing in LPG infrastructure. Marinas are instead liaising with their customers and stocking alternative bottles.
A spokesperson from boatfolk marinas replies:
We recognise the demand for LPG tanks and are watching the situation.
However, there are a range of factors at play in making this decision and, at the moment, we cannot say if we will be investing in LPG tanks.